


Wildfire

by Gluten_Full



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Gen, The Burning Maze Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-25 07:05:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14971694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gluten_Full/pseuds/Gluten_Full
Summary: By midday on Long Island, news of Jason Grace’s death to reached Camp Halfblood. A story about how his closest friends on the east coast found out. "But the bravest fell, and the requiem bell / Rang mournfully and clear”





	Wildfire

It took the EMTs an hour to clear Jason’s body out of the house and for Mr. McLean to get things in order. Piper tried to stay awake, afraid of what dreams she would have when she was asleep, but, finally, she couldn’t keep her eyes open. She begged her mother for a dreamless sleep, but she wasn’t blessed. She only saw images of Jason’s body, and his last words. She dreamt of the moments that they kissed, and made jokes. She dreamt of their break up, of Jason saying that he understood, but being unhappy about it. She woke up crying. 

Piper knew she had only been asleep for a few hours, but she couldn’t go back to that - being awake and exhausted was better than dreaming. She looked out her bedroom window and watched the sunrise over the east. It had risen in New York three hours ago, she realized, it was nearly midday for everyone at camp.  
It took her a few minutes to summon a rainbow in her shower steam, but she finally managed it. She picked up a drachma and threw it into the mist, said the words, and asked ted be connected with Leo Valdez in Camp Jupiter. 

The drachma landed in her bathroom sink. 

Piper sat in her father’s home with Jason’s blood still on her tee shirt, sobbing and throwing drachma’s at the wall. She begged Iris to connect her to Leo, Annabeth, Percy, Chiron, Reyna, Hazel, anyone. Anyone at all. She never got a connection. 

She looked over to her dresser, one of the few pieces of furniture left in the house. She walked over and picked her cellphone up. It had been off for weeks, she didn’t want to bring any unnecessary attention to herself. She turned it on, hoping she could get through to someone, but every call to Annabeth went dead before it was ever connected. She looked at the screen and watched it go black at the end of the call, showing her only her own reflection - puffy eyed, cut face, and covered in blood. Even her mother’s beauty had abandoned her - typical of the gods, always abandoning their heroes. 

Piper gripped the phone in her hand before throwing it on the ground - a bratty thing to do, she knew, but she couldn’t do anything else. She picked up the phone - chunks of class had fallen out of the screen, and it wouldn’t turn on. It was just as useless as it had been before, but at least it didn’t hold any hope for her. 

Jason was gone, Leo was who knew where, Percy and Annabeth were on the other side of the county, Camp Jupiter was under siege. And in a few days she moved to Oklahoma. 

That fates had decided that she was meant to be alone. The cruelest fate for a child of Aphrodite. 

She wouldn’t accept it. 

Piper got off the floor, wiped the tears from her eyes, grabbed her weapons, and made her way out the door. No matter what it took, she decided, they would all pay for what they had done.

~*~*~ 

Jason Grace’s soul reached the Judgement Council within ten hours; express processing for heroes (the large stab wound on the side of his body proves his heroism.) Jason had lost track of time, though, in the darkness of the Underworld. He knew Nico had spent time down there, but he had never taken time to actually image what it would be like to actually cross the river. 

He remembered an old Roman legend that when a hero reached the Underworld they would walk through a field of wheat with the image of their best friend, ready to start their new life in Elysium. As Jason approached the council, the dark floors around him grew taller, util the wheat was up to his waste. 

“Well what are you waiting for?” Piper’s voice said to him. He looked to his left and she was standing there smiling as brightly as ever, and he smiled back. “Go on then, it’ll be okay. You’re, like, the mightiest of hero’s. You’re resume is miles long,” She joked. Jason reached out to her, but she backed away from him, and the wheat receded back into the ground as Jason approached his judgement. 

 It’s only then that Hades starts to pay attention to the tribute that has walked through his kingdom, and only after that, that Hades decides it’s time for his son to know who has moved permanently to the Underworld.

 ~*~*~

Nico had been resting on Will’s bed with him, just telling jokes, and bull shitting about their days. Kayla was on the bed under them, occasionally making jokes back at them. 

A cold sensation ran over Nico - one he had only felt a few times. A familiar soul approaching judgement. Nico sat up quickly, and felt Will grab his hand in concern. Nico focused on the feeling, and followed it down to the Underworld, where he saw Jason standing in front of the council. “No …” Nico jumped off the bed, and put his hands over his face, muffling his sobbing, “No, no, no!” He yelled. 

Will climbed out of his bed and knelt by Nico’s side, pulling his hands away from his face. Tears streaked Nico’s cheeks, and his eyes were already bloodshot. 

Will looked at him, “What’s wrong?” 

Nico shook his head, “…Jason…” Before Nico could finish his sentence, Will and Nico were being pulled through the shadows. 

Will had shadow traveled twice - both times he had thrown up immediately. But this time, he pushed his queasiness down - he couldn’t be sick when Nico looked this hurt. When Will emerged from the shadows, he found himself in the Underworld. Everything was shrouded in gray and mist, with spirits floating around, looking for a home. In front of him, he saw giant versions of Ben Franklin, Shakespeare, and Confucius. 

“The judges,” Nico told him. Nico pointed to the person they were judging - blonde hair, maybe six foot two. Young and powerful - Will could tell that from where he stood. He was too young to die, his healer instincts told him; if this young man was dead, something went wrong. Very wrong. 

Will looked at Nico, who was crying silently. The figure turned around to look at them, and Will instantly recognized Jason Grace - hero, and one of Nico’s closest friends. Will gripped Nico’s hand, but Nico moved forward, ready to run full speed at Jason and pull him back to the land of the living. 

Not yet, a voice said in Will’s head, and, suddenly, they were being transported back to Camp Halfblood. Will had only heard that voice once, on Mount Olympus after defeating Kronos. Hades. 

Will and Nico landed at the top of Halfblood hill, and Nico sat against Thalia’s tree and cried for his friend. Will put his hand of the tree, and wondered who else knew.   
“Is he really dead?” Will asked. Nico nodded as he cried. “And my dad?” Will hated to ask, but he needed to know. 

Nico looked at him, a fierce sadness in his eyes, “Alive,” Will didn’t know it was a Hades thing or just a feeling Nico had, but Nico seemed to know that Apollo was alive because Jason was dead. Will was worried that Nico was right about that, and, if he was, Will didn’t know how to start making amends for what his father caused.  

They stayed on the hill for nearly half an hour, before Nico looked up, tears still in his eyes, but his gaze was strong and determined. “We need to tell everyone else.”  
Everyone else. Will knew what that meant - Nico’s sister, Percy, Annabeth, Chiron. 

“I’ll go with you,” Will promised, taking Nico’s hand and squeezing it for comfort, and suddenly he was pulled through the shadows again. When he opened his eyes, he was inside what looked like an apartment. Everything was baby-proofed, but there wasn’t a baby in sight, although there were some toys strew about. He heard a woman gasp, and he turned around and saw a woman in her late thirties. Nico swayed after the trip, and Will looked at him concerned. He hadn’t shadow traveled this much in months, but Nico seemed determined to stay conscious until … Will wasn’t sure what he was staying awake for.

The woman gasped when she saw Nico. “Oh my goodness, Nico, you scared me,” She said. 

“I’m sorry Ms. Jackson. Is Percy home?” Nico asked. 

She shook her head, and walked closer. She gently wiped tears away from Nico’s face; she had a mother’s touch for sure. Nico seemed to lean into the comfort for a moment before Ms. Jackson kept speaking. “No honey, he’s at school. Why, what happened?” 

Nico looked at her, “Jason is dead.” 

Ms. Jackson looked like she had been hit. She took a step back from Nico, and looked down the hallway to the bedrooms, like there would be someone standing at the end ready to kill one of her babies. 

“I’ll call the school,” she said. 

Ms. Jackson gave them blue cookies and apple juice, and called her husband. “Honey … no I’m fine, Estelle is fine. I need you to call Percy to the office and tell him to come home … I can’t tell you, you can’t tell him just … tell him to come home. And bring Annabeth. Yes I know she goes to another school! I don’t know, he’ll figure it out, he just needs to come home!” when she hung up, she sat down and started to sob. Will reached over and rested a hand on her arm. She looked up and smiled, tears still in her eyes, and took Will’s hand in hers. “Thank you boys, for coming all this way.” 

Nico almost smiled before standing up, and walking over to her chair. He didn’t say anything, he just held out his arms, and she stood up and pulled him into a hug. Will thought Ms. Jackson could have snapped him in half, but Nico hugged back just as tightly. 

An hour later, Percy walked through the door with Annabeth, “Mom, can you please explain –” 

Ms. Jackson pulled him into a spine-crushing hug. “Just shut up for a moment,” she said. Percy didn’t hesitate to hug her back. 

Annabeth looked at Nico and Will on the couch, “What’s going on,” 

Ms. Jackson pulled away from Percy, and lead them both over to the couch. 

When Nico told them what happened, Annabeth cried, but Percy just stood up and walked over to the window. “And Apollo?” He asked. 

“He’s still alive,” Nico said. 

Percy clenched his fists, and Will felt the room get a little more humid. 

“I mean,” Will started, “We don’t have the full story yet, we don’t know what happened.” 

Percy kept looking out the window. “Apollo isn’t Michael or Lee, Will,” Percy said, “he’s a god.” 

Percy walked back over to the couch and sat down next to Annabeth. Will felt Nico squeeze his hand, but Will felt too guilty to squeeze it back.  
   
Percy looked at Annabeth, “What are the chances we could get another flying ship?” 

She shook her head, “Impossible to do quickly.” 

“We could go over land,” Percy suggested. 

“Last time we did that it took a week and something tried to kill us in every major American city.” She said. 

They always had a ease about talking to each other, even in desperate moments. “Do you think Blackjack can make it?” Percy asked. 

“Maybe, but it could really hurt him.” 

Ms. Jackson looked up at them. “Oh no, absolutely not,” she said, “none of you are leaving this apartment. None of you are fighting any wars, or going on any quests. You’re all staying here. It’s a school night,” she said. 

Percy put a hand on her shoulder, “Mom, I don’t want to but -” 

“Then don’t! They will be okay without you! You’ve done so much already!” She said, nearly crying again. 

Annabeth looked at her, “Sally … they’re our friends they need us, and they need our help.” 

Ms. Jackson shook her head, “Not this much,” she started to cry again, “you can’t go to California to fight another battle for them. I can’t lose you,” she said to Percy. “Either of you,” she looked at Annabeth, “Any of you,” she looked at Will and Nico. 

“Mom, we have to -” 

Nico stood up too. He was much shorter than Percy, but he radiated a terrifying energy, “No. If there’s something strong enough in California to kill Jason, then it’s probably not far from Camp.” 

“He’s right,” Annabeth said, “we should get back to camp. It needs us,” she put a hand on Percy’s shoulder, and he seemed to relax a bit. 

“It doesn’t need any of you,” Ms. Jackson protested. “You’ve already given them everything.” 

Percy grabbed his mom’s hands. “I’m not going to die for them,” he said, “but they do need me.” Ms. Jackson closed her eyes, and tears rolled down her cheeks, as her son unpacked his backpack. Percy took out his math and history textbooks, and other normal high school things, and put it back on his back, ready to fill it with things more equipped for war than algebra two. 

Percy looked up at his crying mother, and walked over to her and gave her a hug. His mom sobbed into his shoulder, and Will wondered about his mother, about an hour away by train in New Jersey. He thought about just taking a train from Penn and stopping in for a visit before the end of the world, but that would take too much time. There were already people dying, and he needed to be there to save the rest of them before that happened. 

“Promise me,” Ms. Jackson said, “promise you’ll come back alive from this one.” 

Percy pulled away and looked at her. “They won’t take anything else from me,” he promised before turning towards the door. Annabeth walked over to Sally and gave her a hug. 

“Our friends need our help,” she said. Ms. Jackson didn’t look satisfied with the answer, but, at the very least, accepting of it. 

Percy looked at his mom from the doorway, “I love you, mom,” he said. 

“I love you too,” 

Percy left the apartment quickly, as if he would lose the nerve to if he stayed any longer. Will took Nico’s hand as they walked down the hallway. 

Nico nearly ran up to Percy; he walked next to him down the hallway. “Do we have a plan?” Nico asked. 

Percy looked at him. “Do we need one?” 

Will watched the three of them walked down the hallway together, without a plan, without direction, without any word from the west - just a feeling - and he felt inspired to follow.

**Author's Note:**

> Song lyrics in the summery are from "The Foggy Dew."


End file.
